Search

We study the intrinsic electronic anisotropy and fermiology of the quasi-one-dimensional superconductor Ta4Pd3Te16. Below T*=20 K, we detect a thermodynamic phase transition that predominantly affects the conductivity perpendicular to the quasi-one-dimensional chains. The transition relates to the presence of charge order that precedes superconductivity. Remarkably, the Fermi surface pockets detected by de Haas-van Alphen oscillations are unaffected by this transition, suggesting that the ordered state does not break any translational symmetries but rather alters the scattering of the quasiparticles themselves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Arteriosclerotic lesions are characterized by the accumulation of T lymphocytes and monocytes and the proliferation of intimal smooth muscle cells. Expression of the chemokine monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP- 1) has been observed in arteriosclerotic plaques and has been proposed to mediate the transendothelial migration of mononuclear cells. More recently, MCP-1 has been proposed to affect the proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). We have used reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to investigate chemokine mRNA expression in human arteriosclerotic lesions obtained from surgical biopsy of diseased vascular tissue and show, in addition to MCP-1, expression of the chemokine macrophage inflammatory protein-1alpha (MIP-1alpha) at higher levels than in "normal" aortic tissue. We have also used RT-PCR to characterize the expression of known chemokine receptors by primary human VSMCs. Messenger RNA for the MIP-1alpha/RANTES receptor, CCR-1, and the MCP-1/MCP-3 receptor, CCR-2, was expressed by unstimulated VSMCs grown under serum-free culture conditions for 24 hours. The receptors CCR-3, CCR-4, CCR-5, CXCR-1, and CXCR-2 were not expressed by VSMCs. The presence of functionally coupled receptors for MIP-1alpha on VSMCs was demonstrated by specific binding of biotinylated MIP-1alpha and increases in intracellular Ca2+ levels after exposure to this chemokine. Taken together, these results suggest that chemokines are likely to be involved in arteriosclerosis and may play a role in modulating the function of VSMCs in vivo.

Background: Subungual melanoma is an unpredictable and aggressive tumor with a propensity to metastasize widely. Because it is an uncommon condition, statistical analysis of its behavior patterns is difficult, factors that determine its prognosis are unclear, and optimal management is ill defined., Study Design: A detailed review was undertaken of the clinical and histologic features of subungual melanomas arising from the toenail apparatus in 25 patients treated at the Sydney Melanoma Unit during a 40-year period. Treatment and outcomes were analyzed., Results: Most of the lesions were situated on the great toe in elderly patients of Anglo-Celtic extraction. Antecedent trauma to the toe was frequently reported and delayed diagnosis was usual. There was great variation in Breslow thickness and Clark's level, but these indices were found to have less prognostic significance than for other forms of cutaneous melanoma., Conclusions: The treatment of subungual melanoma of the toenail apparatus is primarily surgical, by amputation at or proximal to the metatarsophalangeal joint. Even if there is no clinical evidence of metastatic disease in regional lymph nodes, radical node dissection is desirable. The condition is most appropriately managed at a specialist center.

An efficient protocol for the purification of pea seed-borne mosaic potyvirus (PSbMV) particles was developed. This led to the purification of 10 PSbMV isolates by a single procedure. Virus aggregation during purification did not occur and consequently, high virus yield was consistently obtained. The virus thus purified was suitable for preparing viral genomic RNA, although conventional methods for RNA extraction resulted in RNA degradation. An alternative method was adopted which yielded reproducibly full length and infectious RNA. This was applied to three isolates of PSbMV and the RNA used to direct complementary DNA synthesis which in turn yielded nearly full length cDNA products.